Our theme is : "FOR THE HEALTH OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN – LET’S TAKE ACTION"

The theme focuses on the improvement of the health of women, infants and their families. The Conference will focus on important midwifery issues related to reproductive health and especially Safe Motherhood.

Every year too many women, newborn and infants in our region still die needlessly or suffer complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Many of these could be prevented by care from appropriately educated and skilled midwives. The Millennium Development Goal 5 (improve maternal health) and Millennium Development Goal 4 (reduce child mortality) remain the least advanced of the MDGs yet the role of midwives has not been advanced in those countries in our region where maternal and newborn outcomes require urgent attention. Women and their families in developing and developed countries need skilled midwives more than ever. Midwives in our Region need support more than ever – let’s take action. Our Region is rich in midwifery knowledge. We challenge all midwives, clinicians, teachers, researchers, policy developers and managers to join us in Hanoi to share your knowledge and skills in order to make a difference for the women and children of Vietnam, the Asia Pacific region and the world.